Turkey: 110 far-left terror suspects sought by warrants

By Muhammed Enes Can

ISTANBUL

A court in Istanbul issued arrest warrants Saturday for over 100 suspects allegedly linked to the far-left DHKP-C terrorist group, according to a judicial source.

As part of an investigation launched by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office into the DHKP-C, prosecutors issued warrants for 110 suspects, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Later, counter-terrorist teams arrested a number of suspects, including the alleged weapons supplier to the terrorists who martyred prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz in March 2015 at Caglayan, one of Turkey’s largest courts.

Kiraz, 46, was taken hostage in the complex and was shot dead after six hours of negotiations. The two hostage-takers, who released photographs of Kiraz with a handgun pointed at his head during the siege, were killed by security forces.

Efforts to arrest the remaining suspects are continuing.

The Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front, or DHKP-C, is responsible for a number of terror attacks in Turkey including the 2013 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, which left a Turkish security guard martyred and a Turkish journalist injured.

The far-left group is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union.